Where has the message changed after the election? I believe I am closer to the Democratic platform now than I was to the Republican Platform, but the far left continues to take over the party and make huge miscalculations about what most Americans perceive as needs. They sense the Democratic party is too narrow in its leadership and that issues like trade which mean something to them were only communicated by Bernie who does not have consistent issues which could make him electable. There are no leaders stressing where the democratic party is going and pouring money into congressional districts, or doing an ill advised strategy to stop Gorsuch sends a clear message these folks are still clueless. Where is Joe Biden type democrats.

My reference is to the media talking heads. My guy was Ed Schultz. A working man hero who fought ferociously for the union members, but when he was for the pipeline, the far left turned on him and he was off msnbc. I know his wife had health issues, but the guy cared about American workers. I just cannot find anybody on MSNBC who is real like Ed.

To me the main issue or point that the Dems need to address is countering the notion articulated by Reagan that "government is the problem". In some cases that can be true but for the most part it looks to me as if Americans are getting the very short end of the stick when it comes to ways the general population could benefit from more of the useful type of government activity.

Other developed countries enjoy universal health care, free college educations and up to date infrastructure. They pay higher taxes than we do but the benefits far outweigh the costs and are actually less than what we end up paying in huge medical bills, enormous college debts, etc.

The public has been brainwashed into supporting policies that largely benefit the 1%, giving them profits to develop personal wealth while contributing little to the general good. The result can be seen in the skewed tax system and the growing wealth gap. Citizens United has given the wealthy few an even more effective means of influencing public opinion and elections to suit their needs.

The dems need to break the idea that government is the enemy. This may not be as gradual a movement in public opinion as once thought. Look at how relatively quickly public attitudes changed toward LGBTQ issues, for example. If the dems can start influencing public opinion around the idea that government can actually be their ally rather than their enemy they will start winning races and start moving the country forward and away from the wealth gap culture that is leading down a dangerous path.

othershoe1030 wrote:To me the main issue or point that the Dems need to address is countering the notion articulated by Reagan that "government is the problem". In some cases that can be true but for the most part it looks to me as if Americans are getting the very short end of the stick when it comes to ways the general population could benefit from more of the useful type of government activity.

Other developed countries enjoy universal health care, free college educations and up to date infrastructure. They pay higher taxes than we do but the benefits far outweigh the costs and are actually less than what we end up paying in huge medical bills, enormous college debts, etc.

The public has been brainwashed into supporting policies that largely benefit the 1%, giving them profits to develop personal wealth while contributing little to the general good. The result can be seen in the skewed tax system and the growing wealth gap. Citizens United has given the wealthy few an even more effective means of influencing public opinion and elections to suit their needs.

The dems need to break the idea that government is the enemy. This may not be as gradual a movement in public opinion as once thought. Look at how relatively quickly public attitudes changed toward LGBTQ issues, for example. If the dems can start influencing public opinion around the idea that government can actually be their ally rather than their enemy they will start winning races and start moving the country forward and away from the wealth gap culture that is leading down a dangerous path.

This is good post, but I'm not sure I buy your "public has been brainwashed" thesis. The 2016 election was close, Trump only got 56% of the Electoral College vote whereas Obama got over 60% in both his elections.

The 2016 election was winnable but Hillary was a terrible candidate and her team botched it. Trump, sadly, just ran a better campaign, especially towards the end.

As long as the Clintons maintain their death-grip on the Democratic Party, there's going to be problems. THEY are the problem as far a Presidential elections.

If there's a serious economic downturn before 2020--and the likelihood is that there will be--the Dems will be fine.

The greater problem is the State houses. We redistrict again after the 2020 census and if the Rs still hold the majority of the State houses, it's not going to go well. The Dems have to pay more attention to the State houses, a number of them are flippable.

I disagree w/ your assessment of Hillary. She was the best candidate, the smartest and most experienced. Her downfall came when the Russians put out all those false stories and the Dilberts ate them up.

Vikingwoman wrote:I disagree w/ your assessment of Hillary. She was the best candidate, the smartest and most experienced. Her downfall came when the Russians put out all those false stories and the Dilberts ate them up.

Sorry, but this doesn't hold water. Hillary WON the popular vote! She lost because she didn't campaign in the states that counted, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania etc. She blew those formerly Dem states, she was such a shitty candidate. For godsakes, she's been in politics almost all her adult life but she apparently didn't know how to count Electoral College votes.

Remember, Trump had to deal with the "grab her by the pussy" video, so the "terrible story" score was about even. Her personality is just so offensive to ordinary working people that they preferred to vote for an asshole.

Now, if she'd only have the decency to step off the world stage and retire somewhere. But no-o-o-o... she's back!

othershoe1030 wrote:To me the main issue or point that the Dems need to address is countering the notion articulated by Reagan that "government is the problem". In some cases that can be true but for the most part it looks to me as if Americans are getting the very short end of the stick when it comes to ways the general population could benefit from more of the useful type of government activity.

Other developed countries enjoy universal health care, free college educations and up to date infrastructure. They pay higher taxes than we do but the benefits far outweigh the costs and are actually less than what we end up paying in huge medical bills, enormous college debts, etc.

The public has been brainwashed into supporting policies that largely benefit the 1%, giving them profits to develop personal wealth while contributing little to the general good. The result can be seen in the skewed tax system and the growing wealth gap. Citizens United has given the wealthy few an even more effective means of influencing public opinion and elections to suit their needs.

The dems need to break the idea that government is the enemy. This may not be as gradual a movement in public opinion as once thought. Look at how relatively quickly public attitudes changed toward LGBTQ issues, for example. If the dems can start influencing public opinion around the idea that government can actually be their ally rather than their enemy they will start winning races and start moving the country forward and away from the wealth gap culture that is leading down a dangerous path.

This is good post, but I'm not sure I buy your "public has been brainwashed" thesis. The 2016 election was close, Trump only got 56% of the Electoral College vote whereas Obama got over 60% in both his elections.

The 2016 election was winnable but Hillary was a terrible candidate and her team botched it. Trump, sadly, just ran a better campaign, especially towards the end.

As long as the Clintons maintain their death-grip on the Democratic Party, there's going to be problems. THEY are the problem as far a Presidential elections.

If there's a serious economic downturn before 2020--and the likelihood is that there will be--the Dems will be fine.

The greater problem is the State houses. We redistrict again after the 2020 census and if the Rs still hold the majority of the State houses, it's not going to go well. The Dems have to pay more attention to the State houses, a number of them are flippable.

By brainwashed I mean there were enough people who had come to the conclusion that government was SO terrible that they needed to send in someone who was a total neophyte with no ideology, no working concept of how government works and no government experience to fix it. Now they see the floundering and incoherence that electing someone like that brings. It's like getting someone with no flight experience to fly a jumbo jet. It doesn't work.

Hillary lost for a lot of reasons among which were the Russians, her personality and the fact that she represented the establishment when this was a "change" election. The Clintons and the rest of the Dem establishment need to let go, that's for sure. I think the country was ready to move further to the left with Bernie than the establishment was willing to let it.

It is evident that the liberals need to focus on local and state races in order to effect redistricting. Having the WH alone is not enough to accomplish what needs to be done. Basically I agree with what you've said.

Hillary lost because partly of her personality and Trump won because of his? Nah, the votes were close in those states. Hillary would have won if not for the false stories about her. Sounds like you believed them too.

The fake news and propaganda machine which Markle spammed this site and every blog in America, attempted to create a factual basis that Hillary was a criminal. She was not. It was an absurd proposition as people misquoted criminal statutes, court cases, and facts, but when the FBI opened a closed investigation where they said she did nothing wrong, and associated the same with Anthony Weiner.......the election was lost for midwestern traditional democratic voters who did not trust her trade promises. It should have never have happened in America where a foreign nation can pull off what Russia did, but the truth is Hillary Clinton was stabbed in the back by her own husband meeting the AG on a runway......that hubris and arrogance could never be overcome even though nothing was done wrong, it once again added to the narrative and propaganda.

In a significant part, but when no democratic candidate has skipped Wisconsin while campaigning for President, and she was campaigning in Arizona, it was more than that.......it was hubris fed by MSNBC telling folks that Donald Trump would never be President. I actually blame the same, and all the free media time provided by the left to President Trump blew up in their rating chasing faces......and the funny thing......they have left off right where they did before the election.....more free media for the President and not enough hard journalism. Blowing up trivial issues, and completely ignoring the meat and potato issues. The Russians and Comey were just part of the losing strategy.

In a significant part, but when no democratic candidate has skipped Wisconsin while campaigning for President, and she was campaigning in Arizona, it was more than that.......it was hubris fed by MSNBC telling folks that Donald Trump would never be President. I actually blame the same, and all the free media time provided by the left to President Trump blew up in their rating chasing faces......and the funny thing......they have left off right where they did before the election.....more free media for the President and not enough hard journalism. Blowing up trivial issues, and completely ignoring the meat and potato issues. The Russians and Comey were just part of the losing strategy.

In a significant part, but when no democratic candidate has skipped Wisconsin while campaigning for President, and she was campaigning in Arizona, it was more than that.......it was hubris fed by MSNBC telling folks that Donald Trump would never be President. I actually blame the same, and all the free media time provided by the left to President Trump blew up in their rating chasing faces......and the funny thing......they have left off right where they did before the election.....more free media for the President and not enough hard journalism. Blowing up trivial issues, and completely ignoring the meat and potato issues. The Russians and Comey were just part of the losing strategy.

Vikingwoman wrote:Hillary lost because partly of her personality and Trump won because of his? Nah, the votes were close in those states. Hillary would have won if not for the false stories about her. Sounds like you believed them too.

As far as her personality goes let's say she spoke more to the head, while Bernie connected with people on an emotional gut level. He talked about things that were real and important such as crushing college debt and the income/wealth gap. She had more experience and was obviously the most qualified candidate running, no doubt.

Trump promised to fix it. Whatever "it" was. People got swept up in the idea that it would be effective to just poke a finger in the eye of the establishment. The gridlock and lack of progress in DC is caused, I think, by congress and special interests concerned with maintaining their gravy train of tax breaks. Trump promised a lot to big business in the form of tax breaks.

There is a whole constellation of factors that contributed to her defeat. I agree with Mr. Oats that the media giving all the free time to 45 was a huge factor as was the steady drumbeat of fake news and accusations of criminal activity on Hillary's part.

In a significant part, but when no democratic candidate has skipped Wisconsin while campaigning for President, and she was campaigning in Arizona, it was more than that.......it was hubris fed by MSNBC telling folks that Donald Trump would never be President. I actually blame the same, and all the free media time provided by the left to President Trump blew up in their rating chasing faces......and the funny thing......they have left off right where they did before the election.....more free media for the President and not enough hard journalism. Blowing up trivial issues, and completely ignoring the meat and potato issues. The Russians and Comey were just part of the losing strategy.

2seaoat wrote:Where has the message changed after the election? I believe I am closer to the Democratic platform now than I was to the Republican Platform, but the far left continues to take over the party and make huge miscalculations about what most Americans perceive as needs. They sense the Democratic party is too narrow in its leadership and that issues like trade which mean something to them were only communicated by Bernie who does not have consistent issues which could make him electable. There are no leaders stressing where the democratic party is going and pouring money into congressional districts, or doing an ill advised strategy to stop Gorsuch sends a clear message these folks are still clueless. Where is Joe Biden type democrats.

The party leadership is out of touch with the peoples' problems. They need to get back to active support of working people, unions, consumer protection, and environmental conservation. The system is too supportive of groups who don't need government breaks. As you can see from this article there are activist groups that are doing a "work-around" the party.

Democratic Voters Pour Cash Into Kansas Special Election While National Party Stays Away

James Thompson, the Democrat running to fill the House seat vacated by Trump administration appointee Mike Pompeo, is seeing a last-minute fundraising surge in the days before Tuesday’s unexpectedly competitive Kansas special election.

Thompson, a civil rights attorney and Army veteran, raised approximately $240,000 in 20,000 individual donations, much of it since Thursday, according to his campaign manager, Colin Curtis. The haul was bolstered by an ActBlue fundraising campaign backed by several progressive grassroots groups, including Daily Kos, Democracy for America, and Our Revolution.

The surge in donations shows a groundswell of support for Thompson, the first Democrat to face voters in a federal election since Donald Trump won the presidency in November. The Democratic Party, however, is staying away from the race.

Thompson dismissed his party’s failure to invest the race as “establishment thinking.”

2seaoat wrote:The fake news and propaganda machine which Markle spammed this site and every blog in America, attempted to create a factual basis that Hillary was a criminal. She was not. It was an absurd proposition as people misquoted criminal statutes, court cases, and facts, but when the FBI opened a closed investigation where they said she did nothing wrong, and associated the same with Anthony Weiner.......the election was lost for midwestern traditional democratic voters who did not trust her trade promises. It should have never have happened in America where a foreign nation can pull off what Russia did, but the truth is Hillary Clinton was stabbed in the back by her own husband meeting the AG on a runway......that hubris and arrogance could never be overcome even though nothing was done wrong, it once again added to the narrative and propaganda.

Ahh, I don't really think that was significant at all to anyone other than the repugs who were looking for anything. Loretta Lynch was an old friend of Bill Clinton and he appointed her to her job. I don't think he had any intention other than saying hello at a chance meeting.

If President Trump had met with Putin spontaneously on a plane while under investigation for Russian influence, do you think the American public would be any more generous. Bill Clinton made a huge mistake.

2seaoat wrote:The fake news and propaganda machine which Markle spammed this site and every blog in America, attempted to create a factual basis that Hillary was a criminal. She was not. It was an absurd proposition as people misquoted criminal statutes, court cases, and facts, but when the FBI opened a closed investigation where they said she did nothing wrong, and associated the same with Anthony Weiner.......the election was lost for midwestern traditional democratic voters who did not trust her trade promises. It should have never have happened in America where a foreign nation can pull off what Russia did, but the truth is Hillary Clinton was stabbed in the back by her own husband meeting the AG on a runway......that hubris and arrogance could never be overcome even though nothing was done wrong, it once again added to the narrative and propaganda.

Ahh, I don't really think that was significant at all to anyone other than the repugs who were looking for anything. Loretta Lynch was an old friend of Bill Clinton and he appointed her to her job. I don't think he had any intention other than saying hello at a chance meeting.

It was an ill advised meeting. I doubt that anything inappropriate was discussed, but watching Bill Clinton at the end of the campaign, and things which were coming out of his mouth.....I am not sure he is hitting on all cylinders. It interjected the FBI into a role which is not normal. Bill Clinton screwed up big time.

A great deal of Bill's Hillary's and Donald's behavior seemed like very old people who had lost capacity. I think we need an age limit on Presidents. When they first take office they must be 65 or younger. How do you travel to Arizona the last week of the campaign and not visit Wisconsin. That type of miscalculation indicated distorted perceptions. President Trump's tweets are often incoherent.

2seaoat wrote:A great deal of Bill's Hillary's and Donald's behavior seemed like very old people who had lost capacity. I think we need an age limit on Presidents. When they first take office they must be 65 or younger. How do you travel to Arizona the last week of the campaign and not visit Wisconsin. That type of miscalculation indicated distorted perceptions. President Trump's tweets are often incoherent.